Tobacco-stemming machine.



A. GRODSKY. TOBACCO STEMMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED I123. 18, 1 9 07.

- Pat nt iiubt. 13,1908.

ine

' Terr ll whom itmay concern:

UN TED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

AARQN GRQDSKY, QF QIIQCINNATI, 91119.-

TOBACCO-BTEMMIN'G MAGHINE.

it known that I, AARON GnoDsKr, a citizenof the United States of America, residing in the city of- Cincinn'a'ti, in the county f Hamilton and State of Ohio; have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tobacco-Stemming Machines, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description,

' reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification. My invention relates to tobacco stemming machii ies, and has for its object the im )rovemeut in the construction of such evices wherebflyi they are simplified and rendered more e 'cient in action.'

The novelty of my invention consists in the combination and sub-combination of the parts as will he hereinafter set forth and specifically pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, l igure 1 is a front elevation. Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view. Fig. 3 is an endelevation.

. 'lhe invention includes, generally, means for feediug a tobaccoleaf lengthwise of its stem and removing the latter, and mechanisinbpcrating in advance of said means for slnea'ding out the tobacco leaf and cleaning the same, the latter u'iechanisl'n comprising leaf engaging devices movable transversely of the direction of the feed of the leaf through the stemming mechanism and operating in substantially the same plane throughout their entire engagement with the leaf.

The leaf feeding mechanism disclosed herein comprises a pair of lower rollers E E, and a pair. of superimposed rollers C C, both sets ofrollers"beln 'journaled in a suitable frame preferably including a base A end plates A anrla top A The rollers C C are secured upon a shaft Bjournalcd in the end plates A and their adjacent ends are separated by a space'block C ofthe width of the strip contaiii ing the stem intended to be cut from the lea I The stem remover illustrated consists of a p'a-ir of disk cutters C held between the ends of. the rollers C C and the space block C 'which disks cooperate with a pair of disks Ff held between the inner ends of the rollers shaft B and the dislt cutters C are fixed with Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed February is, 1907. semi No 868,088.

characteristic of the leaf.

Patented 0a. 1a, 1908.

respect to said rollers: The shaftB is directly driven by a pulley I secured thereto. A. set of clearers, designated H, is associated with the rollers for preventing the tobacco leaf adhering thereto and'a similar set of clearers H cooperate with the space blocks for insuring the discharge of the removed stems.

For spreading out the leaves transversely in advance of their entrance between the feed rollers and cutters and foretfectuall ing the leaves, I provide flexible lea enga ing devices movable transversely of the/- rection of the feed of theleaves which 'de-' vices have the parts thereof contacting the leaf movable in the same plane throughout the entire extent of their engagement wit the leaf. k

As .Wlll be understood, it is impossible to subject tobacco leavesto-other than very entle treatment without rupturin or tearing the same and thereby largely estroyin their value and so far as I am advised, a attempts to profitably spread and'elean tobacco leaves by circular or cylindrical brushes have resulted in failure due to this As will be appreciated, it is impossible to obtain a uniform pressure of the bristles or hairs of a circular or cylindrical brush throughout the entire extent of its engagement with the leaf when such brush used to spread out the leaf and -to clean the same; I deem it of great importance that. the pressure of the cleaning device shall be uniform throughout its e11- tire engagement with the leaf and in order to obtain this result I have provided, in the particular embodiment of my invention illustrated herein, suitable brushes in the form of traveling belts, the rollers over which the belts run bein so arranged that the entire surface or P8351 of the brush which engages the leaf will move in a uniform plane and contact the leaf with a uniform pressure.

As shown herein, the belts are guided about rollers journaled in brackets F 2 ex,- tending-inwardly from the base A and top A respectively. As shown, two pairs of belts 1 are employed arranged respectivelyto engage the leaf on opposite sides of its central stem and the members of each pair are so arranged as to contact the leaf upon the upper and under sides thereof. As here in illustrated, the drive and guide rollers for the belts are mounted on the inner ends of short shafts F journaled in the brackets F clean- .and suitable drive pulleys A are secured to the outer ends of these shafts. The shafts I! are preferably driven from the shafts B D by suitable transmitting mechanism; As disclosed, each belt I is carried abouta pair of rollers, the outermost of which is driven from the adjacent end of the shaft B or D by means of a suitable belt A The shafts B D are provided with suitable pulleys B D over each of Which the drive belt, which. is connected to the adjacent pulley A, runs, each of the belts being guided around suitable pulleys carried by one of a number of brackets A secured to the end plates of the machine.

It will be observed that upon the rotation of the pulley I in the required direction, the

feed rolls C and E are rotated to feed the leaf over the table G, and the respective pairs of brush belts F are drivenso that the leaf engaging reaches of each pair of belts are-moved in the same direction and the reaches on each side of the table are moved over the leaf outwardly from the median line of the leaf.

A suitable feed table G is provided having its upper surfaces disposed substantially in the hwizontal plane of the feed of the leaf through the rollers B I), this table having a section in advance of the brushes and a section arranged between the latter and the rollerswith an interrupted part between two sections in which the brushes work. The bristles of the brushes may consist of soft hair or other suitable material which will not be likely to puncture or rupture the to bacco leaves.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. In a tobacco treating-machine, the combination. with a table over which the tobacco leaf is fed, of brush-belts arranged in pairs on each side of the median line of the table and extending transversely the path of the leaf, said brush-belts providing leaf engaging reaches lying in a plane substantially parallel with the plane of the upper surface of the table, means for feeding the leaf, and means for driving the brush-belts whereby the'leaf engaging reaches at each side of the table. are moved in an outwardly direction from the median line of the leaf.

'2. A machine of the character described having two Spreaders in the form of travelf in belts provided with brushesonela3bove an the-other below the leaf-plane,-serving to act upon the leaf in the same direction, and two more spreaders also in the form of traveling belts provided with brushes-(me above and the other below the leaf-plane- 5 serving to act upon the leaf inan opposite direction to the action of the first named" Spreaders, those belts that act upon and above the leaf having flat stretches adjacent to the leaf-plane substantially parallel to said plane and to the stretches of the belts beneath the leaf-plane, substantially as described.

In a tobacco treating machine, the coming over which the leaf is fed, of brush-belts arranged in pairs at each side of the table and extending transversely the path of the, leaf at said opening, said brush-belts providing leaf engaging reaches between which the leaf is fed, means for feeding the leaf, and means for driving the brush-belts whereby the leaf engaging reaches at each side of the table are moved in an outwardly direction from the median line of the leaf.

4,. In a tobacco stemming machine, the combination with a table over which the leaf is fed, of means for feeding and means for stennningthe leaf, pairs of brush-belts arranged adjacent an edge of the table and on each side of the median l1ne thereof, said brush belts extending transversely the path. of the leaf and providing leaf engaging reach-es between which the leaf is fed, and means for driving the brush-belts whereby the leaf engaging reaches on the respective sides of the table are moved in an outwardly direction from the median line of the leaf.

5. In a tobacco treating machine, the'combination with a table over which the tobacco leaf is fed, of brush-belts arranged in pairs on each side of the median line of the table and adjacent an edge thereof, said. brushbelts extending transversely the path ofthe leaf and providing leaf en aging reaches between which the leaf is fed, means for feeding the leaf, and means 'for driving the brush -belts whereby the leaf engaging reaches at each side of the table are movedv in an outwardly direction from the median line of the leaf.

6. In a tobacco stemming machine, the combination with a table provided with an opening over which the leaf is fed, of brushbelts arranged at said oiening in pairs on opposite sides 'of the ta 1e and extending belts providing leaf engaging reaches be- ;fiiveen which the leaf is passed, means at the Smeans and the brush-belts-whereby the leaf eis fed through the machine and stemmed and the leafengagingreaches at eachside of the from the median line of the leaf.

' AARON GRODSKY.

Witnesses:

' Hmuus,

GLENA Perronann'.

bination with a table provided with an opentransversely the path of the leaf, said brushtable are moved in an outwardly, direction. I 

